City Council has approved reallocating nearly $1 million in federal funding to improve the baseball field at Oakbrook Homes.

Council recently voted unanimously to reallocate $990,250 in Community Development Block Grant funds originally intended for citywide sidewalk improvements to the Reading Housing Authority’s ongoing Oakbrook Homes revitalization project.

The funds will help complete the final phase of playground and athletic field upgrades at the 530-unit public housing complex at 1001 Scott St.

The sidewalk project originally slated for 2024 and 2025 was postponed because it could not meet the Nov. 1 federal spending deadline, said Jamar Kelly, city finance and deputy managing director.

Kelly said the city had to find a shovel-ready project that could use the funds quickly and the Oakbrook project fit that and other criteria.

Kelly also confirmed the sidewalk repairs would be pushed to future budgets.

“That will be built into the budget for next year,” he said, “and we’ll be discussing that with council.”

Oakbrook Homes, Reading’s largest public housing community with approximately 1,600 residents — more than half of them children — has been undergoing a multiphase transformation focused on improving living conditions.

The current phase targets outdoor spaces, including a central playground and the baseball field, which holds deep community significance.

The field was very active in the 1970s when a city-county league played there, David Talarico, vice president and director of facilities for the housing authority, told council during a recent presentation.

Reading City Council to vote on $1 million for outdoor project at Oakbrook Homes

Use fell off in the 1990s and the field was neglected, he said. But after he and some others skimmed the grass off the infield, use resumed within a week or so.

“People just came out there with the kids,” he said. “And next thing you know, there were pickup games.”

The planned upgrades include new dugouts, an announcer’s booth with storage underneath, accessible paths, picnic stations, grills, lighting and security features.

Council members voiced strong support for the project, but acknowledged community backlash over the reallocation.

Councilman Jaime Baez Jr., who grew up in Oakbrook, said: “It’s just a little bittersweet, right? I am happy the money did not go unused, and we want what’s best for that community. But I can’t disregard the fact that there’s a bitterness, the taste it’s leaving, that the money did not go into what it was purposed for.”

Council President Donna Reed stressed the ongoing need for sidewalk repairs citywide.

“It just can’t be undercut because walk on any block and the issues are there,” she said, and it’s every neighborhood.”

Reed expressed frustration, saying the sidewalk project has been ongoing since 2019 with interruptions and needs to be completed.

City Managing Director Jack Gombach also emphasized the importance of shovel-readiness in making the decision.

“The most important factor in this determination is shovel-readiness,” he said. “The housing authority is the best-suited partner because they will have the ability to spend just under $1 million by October 15 as a project partner.”

Officials said the authority was ready to break ground quickly.